Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Home Economics

Along with millions of other Americans, I am very happy and hopeful today because we are inaugurating a compassionate and brilliant man as our new president. As Rachel Maddow just said, "If you're a civics dork, this is bigger than Christmas!" Today is a party, but tomorrow, reality will set in again with a vengence. Our country has so many terrible problems that seem insurmountable, but I feel that Barack Obama feels our pain as individual citizens and will involve us in the solutions to those problems. He has already spoken of the need for all of us to take responsibility for helping to turn our country around. No one can sit back and wait to be rescued, we all have to work very hard.

I've certainly been trying to practice a lot of old-fashioned home economics for the last year--paying down debt, letting the credit cards cool off, cooking at home as often as possible, using the freezer and the pantry more, repairing rather than buying new, repurposing clothes, and, as a quilter, using up the stash. I think we can help each other with this and the Internet and television provide fantastic venues for dispensing information. We need repurposed versions of the homefront efforts during World War II--Victory Gardens, metal drives, grease drives, etc. I feel that people are anxious and willing to do whatever they can to help, but they just need some guidance.

I'm hoping that the bloggers in the quilting community will come up with some great service projects and will serve as conduits for home economic information for all of us. The new year has encouraged many members of the Quilt Art listserv to clean and reorganized their studios and work spaces. Such a clean out and reorganization will produce bags and boxes of things you don't want anymore, and my suggestion is: don't take it to the curb. Make a trip to Goodwill or another charitable organization and donate those things or organize a swap meet at your next quilt guild meeting.

I'm going to enjoy the party today, but also do lots of thinking about the work that is to come. It's nice to be proud to be an American again.